Entwine
by sighs.and.smiles
Summary: His eyes narrowed as a memory-so old, so vague, yet so vivid-clawed at the back of his mind. He knew her. Even though, he has never met her. That was enough to make him wait. AU. SasuSaku.
1. Him

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot and the idea. _Naruto_ is property of Kishimoto Masashi and will remain that way.**

Prompt: In another lifetime, how can you recognize me? I wouldn't know you... you wouldn't know me...

Note: Been a long time, huh? Well, I really have nothing to say about that. So, here's a new fic for you guys. Hope you read, enjoy and review! Reviews make me happy and inspire me to write better,

Again, enjoy and review!

~ss

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**~Entwine~**

The air around him stifled his breath, almost suffocating him when he stepped out onto the platform. Around him, commuters left and right pushed past him to get to their destinations. Not five minutes and Uchiha Sasuke could already feel the stifling air creeping up at his senses.

All at once, he felt the beginnings of a headache throb against his temple.

He sighed, knowing all too well the reason for his predicament. He missed his car. Really, he did. And, he cursed the stupid dobe of a best friend of his for wrecking it. He knew, of course, that Naruto wasn't the type of person to trust with anything big, shiny, and expensive. The blonde twit could wreck anything because of his impulsiveness.

Sasuke didn't know what had possessed him to even **let **the blonde buffoon borrow his car. Inwardly, he cursed Naruto for his stupidity and himself for even allowing the idiot to take it in the first place.

But more important than his disdain for the blonde and his momentary lapse of judgment was his contempt for the train station. He despised the lack of space and sheer amount of people this claustrophobic-inducing area could hold.

He grimaced before he moved forward, tightening his hold on his backpack.

Sasuke grunted as he fought against the commuter traffic. He hated how desperate these people were forcing their way into the train cart even before the other passengers could get off. He glared at them.

Almost immediately, the people backed away, creating some space for the Uchiha. Some of the females grinned up at him and winked flirtatiously as they waited for the stoic boy to walk past them.

Sasuke ignored them as he clenched his fist at his side. He pointedly ignored any form of eye contact as he wove past them, crossing the threshold in sure, deliberate steps. Once he was safely standing behind the yellow line, chaos ensued.

The waiting commuters made a mad dash for the train while the remaining passengers fought their way to get out.

Sasuke walked away from the commuter chaos and headed towards the gates. He couldn't care less about those people.

A moment later, he felt something brush pass him and a soft tinkle—so quiet against the backdrop of muttering voices, but he heard... as clear and as pure as the sudden thud in his heart—sounded, landing on the ground by his feet. Looking down, he noticed something glisten in the light.

Slowly, Sasuke knelt down and grabbed the offending thing, turning it in his hand and appraising the intricate piece of jewelry. It was a bracelet made out of twenty silver links with a small circular accessory hanging from it. It was unclasped, the lock loosened and worn like it was clinched around a dainty hand one too many times.

He brought the accessory closer to his sight, eyes narrowing as a memory—so old, so vague, yet so vivid—clawed at the back of his mind. He looked back to the commuter chaos behind him, searching, struggling to find—_what am I looking for_ _?_ he thought—something... just something.

With his height, it wasn't a problem to survey the different heads entering and exiting the carts. He stood still, stayed against his will, waiting... just waiting for something, anything to stop the sudden rush of nostalgia entangling itself into his being. It whispered of _once upon a time so long, long ago_. There was something... just something.

Suddenly, a shrill ring reverberated throughout the station. The warning bells rang loud and clear, signaling the passengers to remain on the platform or to get on a train. They rang high and long, breaking through whatever trance Sasuke was on.

He snorted, feeling whatever nostalgic reverie disappear. Now, he felt foolish and annoyed as he ran his hand through his sable hair. He made a sound behind his teeth and looked at the same bracelet still held tightly in his hand. He glared at it for no apparent reason and immediately turned on his heel.

Sasuke made a beeline for the _Lost and Found_ section of the train station. He didn't know to whom this bracelet belonged to. He didn't know which unfortunate little sap lost this thing. It wasn't his business. He wasn't about to waste his time finding the owner of this blasted thing.

From his periphery, however, something caught his sight. He stopped again and looked over his shoulder, obsidian eyes zeroing inside one of the train carts bound for Shibuya. Unconsciously, he turned his body as he watched a girl, with her head bent down, search through her own messenger bag. He didn't why he knew how her brow would be scrunched in part concentration and part agitation as the object of her attentions was nowhere to be found.

The clawing in his mind returned, growing even more as he watched her, taking in her features—features he didn't know if they were from observation or memory. All he could see was her petal-pink hair, her fair porcelain skin, her height reaching just past his shoulders, and her seemingly wide forehead furrowed. She was familiar. Close.

Unknowingly, a name escaped his lips—a whisper driven away fleetingly by the wind.

As if she was called, the girl looked up, startled, eyes wide as they stared straight at him.

Immediately, Sasuke stood a little straighter as she gazed right at him with those eyes—a shade so pure like the first blades of grass on his mother's garden once spring came.

They stared at each other, her with surprise written all over her brow, mouth slightly agape, and him, eyes blank except for the question, the cognition present in them. It lasted a second. Or it could've lasted a lifetime. The moment was cut short when her train began to move then disappear down the railway.

Sasuke blinked, suddenly aware of the multitude of sounds around him and the plethora of people bumping against him, cursing him for standing in the way. He glared at them with his own disdainful eyes, conveying more he could with just that simple gaze.

Like in the platform before, the people backed away from him, deliberately going out of their way to get out of his.

Sasuke smirked, one end of lip curling in an almost triumphant grin. Unconsciously, his gaze drifted back to the item in his hand, feeling the smooth, cool surface against his fingertips.

"Sir?" A voice broke out from his reverie and he looked up, noticing one of the station's guards looking nervously up at him. "Is something wrong, sir? You've been standing there for awhile?" He asked before he noticed the glistening bracelet in Sasuke's hand. "Sir, is that yours? Would you like me to get it to _Lost and Found_?"

Immediately, Sasuke curled his hand around it, fisting it in his hold. "No. I'll hold on to it. I... know the owner." He nodded his head. "I know her."

The guard looked unsure as he stared at the tall, brooding young man before him. He watched his expression for a moment before he nodded and left the Uchiha to whatever thoughts he had.

Sasuke's eyes had drifted back to the empty railway, his expression solemn with a tinge of something else. He remained there a little longer, lingering by the sidelines before he sighed and headed out, vaguely remembering today was a Friday. His chances of finding the girl would be slim during the weekend.

He'd wait for Monday.

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edited. 11/05/12.


	2. Her

~Her~

Prompt: In another lifetime, how can you recognize me? I wouldn't know you... you wouldn't know me...

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot and the idea. _Naruto_ is property of Kishimoto Masashi and will remain that way.

Note: Long time in the making this one. In commemoration of SasuSaku month. Cheers!

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_~Her~_

_Dressed in a white sundress and dainty ballet slippers on her feet, she wandered down the bustling streets of Kyoto one fine Sunday morning in autumn. Everywhere she looked, she was awestruck with the sights and sounds that greeted her senses. The blend of modern and traditional Japan took her breath away in its simplistic splendor._

_Walking down the streets, with the light peeking behind the clouds and the gentle breeze caressing her face, she felt like she was a part of this world. She envied the women wearing kimonos, admiring the intricate details displayed on the fabrics. She fought back a grin at the men dressed in samurai garb marching down the streets with purpose in their strides as they brought life to an ancient tradition. The sheathed swords hanging on their sides were a reminder, a testament on how weapons served to protect civilians from danger back then. Her grin escaped at the sight of children in varying animal masks passing her by. Her emerald eyes trailed after them. They chased each other, avoiding the grasp of one hand and jokingly pushing the other into the path of the 'it'. She couldn't see but she knew. They were grinning from ear to ear._

_The atmosphere was bursting with life. No one was idle. Merchants with their own sets of tricks enticed passerbys to come and to look at their wares, to taste a sample of their foods, or to play the games set up along the pathway._

_The mysterious blend of old and new beguiled her. A sense of belonging crept up at her being as she continued to observe the sights around her. At the back of her mind, a voice whispered of a time ruled by feudal lords, protected by samurais, and stalked by ninjas in the shadows. A time where order was found in the tune of chaos, where territories were marked by villages and guided by the knowledge of histories past._

_A gentle sense of peace blanketed her as she continued down the path. Softly, under her breath, she began humming a breathless sort of tune. The melody was old, nostalgic. The combination of notes reminded her of cherry blossoms in spring, blooming at the onset of the season until they slowly fell to the ground in a storm of petals. The notes conveyed of a time where both joy and sorrow wafted together in harmony. The inflections of a pain and of a romance blanketed with a promise. _

_Her heart wrenched but she continued humming the song under her breath. She closed her eyes and let the melody take over. When she opened them once more, she looked up, transfixed at the sight of falling leaves as they whirled around her. Deftly, the shade changed from a reddish-orange to a lighter one. 'Pink… cherry blossoms…' She thought as she reached out her hand, palm facing upward as if to cup the fallen plants…_

"_Oh." Her fingers brushed against a rough, wooden surface. Blinking, she was startled out of her reverie, eyebrows scrunching together. She looked over her shoulder, surveying her surroundings. _ Weird_, she thought, _where am I?

_She looked around her, noting the narrow stretch of street she found herself in. Unlike the somewhat modernized stalls in the main streets of Kyoto, the stalls here were ancient like from some scene in Japanese period films her father loved to watch. The simple architecture and its wizened frames spoke of another era, a time so far back._

_She frowned, unaccustomed to the wanderings her mind had taken. She had never wandered around without her wits guiding her. She licked her lips and breathed deeply. _

_Returning her attention to the object her hand had bumped into, she found a door. Looking up, she noted the shop not unlike the stalls surrounding it. Its shape was peculiar, somewhat globular like an hourglass, beige and brown in color like the sands in a desert. It stood about two stories tucked snugly in a corner by itself._

_Normally, she would have been apprehensive about the lack of life, and the strangeness of the surroundings. But, not one nerve in her body screamed that this was dangerous, that this was not safe. Instead, her mind chimed that it was okay, this was safe. A feeling ebbed in her, one that spoke of fate and destiny. _

_She chuckled softly at the turn of her thoughts. _"Alright," _she answered softly, _"since you've never been wrong before, I'll listen."

_Training her eyes on the wooden door, she examined it carefully. There five symbols etched on the door, each as peculiar and as unique as the other. The first was shaped like the outline of an hourglass. Another piece was on top of it like a lid of some sort. The second was merely four slightly curved, slanted lines, evenly shaped and arranged. Two lines situated next to each other, while the other two were below them. The third symbol, right at the very end of the first pattern was shaped like two stones. One was bigger than the other: the bigger was in the background while the smaller, more dominant stone was in the forefront. The fourth was like a "Z", only more the end lines were stretched outwards, extending. A small dot was found beside the top line, situated to the left._

_But it was the last carving, the one in the middle that held her undivided attention. Gingerly, she reached out her fingers and traced the pattern with her finger, following from one end to the other. Her finger glided over the etching, around the curves until the curve straightened at one end where a triangle was carved._

"Strange…" _She murmured under her breath. _"I wonder what these mean…" _She ran her finger on the spiral symbol with the pointed tip once more, her eyes staring intently on the movements. A strange surge of power overwhelmed her and filled her with a strong sense of…_

_She frowned once more, retracting her fingers and stepping back. She scrunched her brow as an odd memory streaked through her mind's eye. She stared at the door once more, took a deep breath, and reached out her hand to the handle._

_Gently, she twisted the knob, while her palm pushed against the hard wood. She peeked her head inside, verdant eyes searching her surroundings and taking in the shop's interior. Slowly, she moved inside and settled the door back quietly. She sauntered into the small room, taking in all the sights the shop had to offer._

_On one end of the room was a shelf filled with knickknacks and what other trinkets. In the middle of that the shelf was a mirror mounted on the wall. Another shelf was filled with dolls and wooden puppets, propped up individually by wood rods. On the other side was a shelf filled to the brim with dusty old books and scrolls. She smiled at the sight, grinning as she approached that particular shelf._

_She ran her fingers against the wizened spines, reading each gold-lettered title carefully. Tomes of ancient text greeted her sight. She took a chance and retrieved one from the shelf. The dust made her sneeze and scrunch her nose in distaste. Gently, she ran her fingers across the worn leather cover, noting the edges and ridges under her fingers. Slowly, she peeled the cover open and studied the page, frowning when she realized she couldn't understand a word written on it._

_She shook her head and returned the book back to its place. After examining several other books, she chuckled under her breath when not one was written in the language of her time. _"Old Japanese." _She mused._

_Just as she was returning the book in her hand, she noticed a scroll tucked at the very back of the shelf, hidden from view. Her heart started to beat fast as she reached out and took it from its perch. Her fingers traced against the cover. Delicately, she opened it, not once caring that she couldn't read the text. She unfurled the ancient parchment, her eyes concentrated on the symbols before a soft tinkle broke her thoughts. _

_She looked down and noticed bracelet resting by her feet. Slowly, she bended down and reached for the item, running her fingers against the interlocked chains of silver. Curling the scroll back in its proper form, she laid it on what minimal space found on the shelf. She brought her palm up to eye level and scrutinized the piece of jewelry tucked within the confines of the scroll. She noted the intricate links that bound the chains together, until her eyes found the charm situated at its very center. _

_Timidly, she wrapped the bracelet on her wrist and clasped the lock in place. All of a sudden, her vision misted over and the throbs of her heart grew in its intensity. She caressed the trinket and brought it closer to her heart—to ease, to soothe the pain, she didn't know but her body acted on its own. She bit her lip and closed her eyes._

"May I help you, miss?" _The voice surprised her more than her sudden actions. Whirling, she caught sight of an old woman seated by the counter. _"You seem lost there. Everything okay?"

_Brushing the moisture accumulating on the side of her eyes, she smiled at the woman and approached her. _"Everything's fine, ma'am. Is this for sale?" _She extended her arm and showed her the accessory wrapped around her wrist._

_The old woman chuckled deeply, shaking her head. _"Nothing in here is for sale, dear. This is a home of sorts."

_The smile faltered from her lips as she stared almost forlornly at the bracelet on her wrist. _"I see… I just thought…"

"Don't misunderstand, dear. This place," _The woman gestured around her_. "is a home for items, priceless heirlooms of eras past. They've spent generations in these shelves. Collecting dust as you can see." _The woman smiled at her._

_A thought occurred to the girl in the white dress. _"Then why do you keep them?"

_The old woman chuckled amusedly. _"To you, this may seem absurd. An old woman living in the depths of the past, collecting knickknacks if you will. But, I'm rather fond calling myself as a safekeeper."

"What do you mean?"

"Child, I don't keep these things for myself. I'm too old to be collecting these things. I keep them here until the right person comes for them."

"I don't understand."

"These artifacts all belonged to people of the past, generations before us. They hold quite mysterious powers. I believe that," _The old woman leaned forward from her perch and __whispered conspiratorially._ "they're searching, searching for the one place they belong to."

_Hesitantly, the girl smiled, searching the old woman's eyes. _"Searching?"

"Ah, child. The people who come into my shop aren't your usual tourists. They're people just like you driven by something more mysterious than logic. Hard to explain, actually. Even I can't understand."

_The old woman stood from her perch and walked around the divider. She approached the shelves with the trinkets. _"See this necklace? This one was worn by a famous Geisha over two hundred years ago. This hairpin was belonged to a clan head five hundred years ago." _She gestured towards the girl, sauntering over to the shelves with the books. _"The books here all belonged to someone or the other. By far, these are the most precious in my care. They tell me the stories of the people who lived." _She took the scroll from the shelf and placed it on the girl's hands._

"That scroll you're holding? From what I've learned through the years, it belonged to the wife of a man from one of the noblest clans at that time. A memoir of their time together if my translations are correct." _The old woman wiggled her eyebrows at the girl._ "There are some pretty juicy bits in there if you can understand."

_The girl blushed to the tips of her ears, almost throwing the scroll to the other side of the room. _

"But that's not the reason I'm telling you all these, child. I believe these items are valuable and they're waiting. Waiting for their right owners to come back. You, for example. You found this shop, that scroll and that bracelet. That's not coincidence, dear. That's fate. Something led you here and now you've found it."

"You think these things… found me?"

"Yes. And it's only right that I give it back to you."

"Are you saying… what I think you're saying?"

_The old woman grinned, taking the girl's hands in hers. _"What you believe to be real is but a figment of some higher power, child." _She was quiet for a moment._ "What's your name, child?"

"Sakura…"

_The smile that erupted from her face was almost secretive. _"Well, Sakura, whether you believe me or not. That scroll and bracelet is yours. I'm not taking it back."

_Sakura stared at the old woman before her and at the bracelet on her wrist. She looked at the woman, long and hard. She noted the almost gleeful sparkle in her eyes and the secret present on her lips. She dropped her gaze to the scroll, caressing its sides. _"What about you? What's your name, ma'am?"

"Oh, don't bother with mine, child. Now, go on your way. It's almost dusk. Best be on your way."

_Feeling the finality of her words, Sakura turned on her heel, taking the few short steps towards the door. Just before the door closed behind her back, Sakura heard the old woman say. _"When you find him, bring him here. I bet you he'd want his sword back."

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The etchings on the door are the five village symbols. By the timeline of this fic, ninja eras are extinct.

Review, if you may please. Thankies a bunchie! :D


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